Painting, Music, Electronic, Media, Pottery, Performing Arts, Historic, Architecture; these elements energize, excite, and sustain imagination. When brought together, their power allows a community to celebrate itself, creating a common voice that blends history and art and culture into a unifying vision. The goal of the New Mexico Arts and Cultural District Program is to help a community turn their vision into commerce, tourism, artistic growth, and civic pride. In technical language: place-based community economic development rooted in a community’s dynamic arts and cultural environment.

The Downtown Albuquerque Arts & Culture District is a creative crossroads, at the intersection of art, performance, technology and New Mexico’s film industry. Downtown is perfectly positioned at the confluence of energy, style, innovation and enterprise.

Downtown Action Team, in partnership with the City of Albuquerque and Creative Albuquerque, is currently in the process of developing a cultural plan for Downtown.  This recently authorized Arts & Culture District will promote the exceptional art and history of Albuquerque, provide resources to artists, and build partnerships for collaborative marketing and promotions.Albuquerque benefits from world-class assets and amenities that can foster the creative economy, including institutions such as the University of New Mexico, Sandia National Laboratory, along with new studios, workforce and infrastructure to support an emerging film industry. The city’s excellent climate and superb recreational opportunities provide a competitive environment to attract the “creative class” of talented and mobile professionals essential to an advanced creative economy. 

 

An effective cultural ecology in downtown Albuquerque suggests a broad-based and intertwined network of assets, talent and cultural consumers that capitalizes on and leverages the cultural resources of the city’s historic neighborhoods as well as its growing and highly diverse demographic profile.
Nurturing a “cultural ecology” that can support such a development will require enlightened civic leadership that understands and appreciates the complex nature of cultural economic development; specifically that intangible benefits and return on investment are inherent. Also essential will be the critical role of city government to provide a supportive organizational structure and enhanced funding for the new Arts and Cultural District. A city arts commission and a quality of life revenue stream are important to consider if Albuquerque will remain competitive with major cities in the West and globally.

 

During the third week of October, 2009 a Resource Team of local & national subject matter experts assembled in Albuquerque for the purpose of conducting a Resource Team Assessment.  Over four days the Resource Team conducted on-site research, community interviews and analysis in four primary areas: Cultural Planning, Marketing, Physical Planning and Capacity Building.  This introductory planning document identifies short and long term goals for the Albuquerque Arts & Culture District. Click on the link posted below to view the final ABQ Resource Team Report.

ABQ Arts & Culture District Resource Team Report

For further Arts and Culture information please visit our partner websites:

www.nmmainstreet.org
www.nmarts.org
www.cabq.gov/publicart
www.creativeabq.org
www.offtheroadnm.com
www.itsatrip.org